Page 17 of Mistletoe Mistake
The seconds on the microwave countdown to zero and I try to clear my mind of everything but the sound of the popcorn popping and the buttery smell overpowering the kitchen.
It seemed so easy back in my workshop with Cohen encouraging me. Make a move and see if Holly feels the same way. If she does, go from there. If she doesn’t, beg her not to confess my betrayal to Brandon.
Fuck.Is it a betrayal? Here in Brandon’s home, it doesn’t seem so straightforward anymore, and the realization that I might be risking my friendship is finally sinking in.
I grab the bowl from the sink and refill it with popcorn, shoving a handful in my mouth as I head back into the living room.
Last night and tonight have only confirmed what I suspected at Holly’s birthday party. She’s the trifecta: smart, funny, and beautiful and when I’m around her, it feelsright.
As I settle back onto the sofa to wait for Holly to come back down, I make peace with what I’m about to do. Because the one thing I have no doubt about?
Holly is worth risking it all for.
7
Holly
“Are you ready?”
“Oh, crap!” I jump as I spill my hot chocolate, barely missing the front of my sweater, and throw a filthy look over my shoulder. I’m met with a set of smiling eyes that are far too perky looking for this early in the morning.
“Not much of a morning person, are you?” Nick comes up behind me and fills a thermos with coffee.
“I’ll have you know that I normally love mornings. But I also normally get more than three hours sleep, so there is that.”
“Whose fault is that?” He twists the top of the thermos tight and turns to look at me.
“Aren’t you going to add milk and sugar to that?” I scrunch up my nose, because, ew. He just laughs at me, so I go on, ignoring him. “If I remember correctly, it wasyouwho kept insisting just one more episode for approximately, hmm…” I tilt my head to the side as if thinking hard. “Twenty episodes.And, it was the five-year-old who has more energy than a red bull addict, who woke me up at five a.m.” I close my eyes and groan, reliving the moment I was woken by a child and a dog, jumping on my bed, yelling and barking. I’ll let you decide who was doing what.
“Are you going to tell me where we’re going yet?”
“No.” He winks at me, smirking. “But I will say that today is day one of‘Get Holly in the Christmas spirit’.”
I groan again, longer and louder this time. Who wants to waste their Sunday onChristmas. Bleurgh.
“We’ve got a bit of a drive, so we should probably get going, if you’re ready.”
“Fine,” I grumble. Bending down to where Gypsy has been camped out by my feet, hoping to catch any breakfast crumbs, I give her a quick kiss on the head and make my way to the front door. “All right, let’s get this over with so I can salvage as much of my Sunday as possible.”
I glance over my shoulder just in time to see Nick give Gypsy one of the treats I have been keeping in the pantry and giving her a scratch behind her ears.
Did you hear that?
It was men and women all over the world, swooning in unison.
“Come on, St. Nick, let’s do this.”
I head outside, pulling my jacket tighter around me the moment I walk out into the freezing morning, and consider how I’m going to get through today.
I was sure Nick was going to make a move last night, but when I came back downstairs, the moment seemed to have disappeared, and instead the only action was on-screen.
To say I’m confused is an understatement. I know I’m not imagining the chemistry between us, so I have to assume my brother is the issue.
If it was up to me, Brandon would have no say in who I date, but I guess I have to admit it could complicate his friendship with Nick. If that’s not a risk he’s willing to take, then I have to respect that.
Not happily, though.
The truck beeps as Nick unlocks it and I climb into the cab. He slides behind the wheel, turns on the engine and promptly starts playing around with his phone. He turns to me with a shit-eating grin just as Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas” starts blaring through the speakers.
